


Fleetwood Mac and the List of Other Things El Doesn't Know

by ciaconnaa



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Gen, Humor, this ain't all that dark kiddos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 06:20:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12858606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ciaconnaa/pseuds/ciaconnaa
Summary: El didn't mean to catch Will kissing that boy outside of the school, honest. Because now she knows all of his secrets. And now she thinks it's only fair she tells him all of hers.





	Fleetwood Mac and the List of Other Things El Doesn't Know

**Author's Note:**

> hey y'all remember that episode of parks and rec where andy finds out ron is duke silver and he decides he'll tell him ALL of his secrets to show he won't tell a soul?? I thought some of the stuff on the list would also be fitting if El said them.

“I know something you don’t want me to know.”

Will looks down at the floor, a sock-covered toe tracing one of the wooden rings in the floorboards of Hop’s cabin. He can see the cuffs on El’s jeans from the corner of his eye before she leans over and taps him on the shoulder.

“Sorry,” she says softly. “I’m sorry.”

He knows this and honestly, he isn’t mad at her. It was bound to happen sooner or later, and at least when it comes to El, he knows she isn’t trying to make fun of him or intentionally put him under any scrutiny or cause pain. She simply doesn’t _know._

But it still doesn’t fix the fact that now El is the first of his friends and family to know he’s _gay._

“I know,” he says back, voice softer than hers. He tries to smile for her, but it feels forced. “It was just an accident.”

Her brow furrows with her frustration. “I still don’t get why you don’t want people to know, or why you're embarrassed...But I still don’t get a lot of things. All I know is that I’m not supposed to know because it’s your secret. I’m sorry.”

“You already said sorry,” he reminds her, and this time his smile comes much easier. El has a hard enough time adjusting to society as it is, so he isn’t going to let her feel bad just because she caught him kissing Kyle behind the bleachers and it happens to inconvenience him. “Besides, now I don’t have to come out to you; just everyone….everyone else. So that’s a perk.”

"Come out?"

"Tell everyone I like...boys."

El still doesn’t look satisfied.

“I have secrets,” El blurts out suddenly.

“I know.” The girl has telekinetic powers, for Pete’s sake.

“No, different secrets.” She pauses. “Embarrassments.”

That strikes him as odd. El doesn’t really get embarrassed, not that he’s noticed. “What do you mean?”

She digs into her pocket. “I’m going to tell you all my secret thoughts and questions. So we’re even.”

“Oh, uh, you really don't have to-”

El pulls out a crumpled up, stapled leaflet made out of torn pages from a notebook. “There’s a lot of stuff I still don’t understand, but I can’t ask you about everything because there’s no time.” She pauses. “Or it’s stupid.”

“There’s no such thing as a stupid question,” Will defends, quoting Mr. Clarke.

She spares him no glance as she clears her throat and begins. “The carton always says 2% milk, and I don’t know what the other 98% is.”

“Oh, okay, well you see—“

She gives him no room to give an explanation. “I don’t understand how crocodiles and alligators are different things when the pictures Dustin showed me look the same.”

“Uhh, well—“

“I chewed and swallowed an entire pack of gum before I found out you weren't supposed to do that.”

“Yeah, that's not good--"

“I still don’t know what flavor American Pie is.”

“What, you mean from the song?”

“The ocean is water and it’s blue, but the water from the sink is clear.”

“…Is that a question, because I can answer—“

“I don’t know what Fleetwood Mac is and at this point, I’m too afraid to ask.”

“Oh , my _god.”_

“Someone said my sweater was chartreuse and I have no idea if that's good or bad."

“Charwhat?”

“One time Lucas said he was a _Master Debater_ and everyone laughed and I still don’t know why.”

“Hah…..hahaha. I remember that. That was funny.”

“I once ate three sleeves of Oreos in one night.”

“That’s the…entire box. But why—“

“—and then I threw up.”

“El!” Will interjects, jumping up from his place on the couch to grab her by the shoulders. She finally looks up from the piece of paper in her hands and when Will looks down, he is mortified to find the list goes on and on. None of these questions are stupid _per say,_ but he understands her point of view. It must be hard to not know about all the things he simply grew up with. “It’s okay. That’s enough. You don’t have to tell me more.”

She looks surprise. “So we’re even?”

Will’s smile slants. “Friends don’t always work like that. Not with this kind of stuff,” he gestured to her list. “You didn’t mean to learn my secret and I forgive you, honest. There’s no real score to even. I’m not mad. And El,” he gave her shoulder a squeeze. “I’m sorry that you’re embarrassed about all the stuff you don’t know. But we know you’re playing catch up, we understand. We won't  make fun of you.”

"You won't?"

“Nah. You don’t have to feel embarrassed, we all want to help you. Just talk to us, okay?”

“Okay. Will?”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t have to feel embarrassed, either. Liking someone is great! I like Mike. It’s so nice.” Her smile is pretty as she clasps her hands behind her back. “I’m glad you found someone to kiss.”

Even though he isn’t quite ready for _everyone_ to know, maybe _one_ person isn't so bad. Especially when it’s someone as caring as El.

“Thanks," he grins. "I’ll try to remember that.”

**Author's Note:**

> this is probably the worst fic ive ever written oh well


End file.
